Golf-ball



G. C. WORTHINGTON AND W. E. HEICHARD.

GOLF BALL.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920..

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE iC. WORTHINGTON .AND WILLIS E REICHARDyOF ELYRIA, OHIO, ASSIGNORS T0 WORTHINGTON BALL COMPANY, 0F ELYRIA, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

GOLF-BALL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

Application mea March 9, 1916. seria No. 83,017.

To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE C. WORTH- INGToN and WILLIS E. REICHARD, citizens of the United States, and residents of El ria, in the county of Lorain and State of hio, have invented certain new and useful VImprovements in Golf-Balls; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of-the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to golf balls, and has for its general object the improvement of golf balls. We aim by our invention to produce a structure which accomplishes the following objects :A

We increase the distance achieved by the ball over the distance' achieved by the older balls, as a result of blows of equal force. This increased distance is partly due to in'- creased carry, but largely due to increased bounds and the ability of the ball to continue to roll after it rst strikes the ground.

We also aim to produce a ball in which the percentage of increase in distance over the older balls is greater for lighter blows than for heavy blows, 'thereby giving a greatly increased distance and an advantage to the large mass of golf players who are known as light drivers. We also produce a ball which is cheaper and easier to manufacture and easierl to assemble than the older balls.` We also produce a ball which can be made light enough to float, without materially reducing its distance, and whose specic gravity is less affected by the temperature than many of the older types of balls, so that when made to float, it will always float, and not be so affected byy temperature changes that it will sink when dropped in water. We also produce a ball, which, on account of the greater resiliency of the center of the ball, tends more to maintain its true shape, and which will, lin fact, maintain its true shape through all kinds of uses.

By improving the centers of golf balls, we

also .aim to overcome certain objections to balls which have hitherto been in use. S0 far as we are aware, substantially all of the balls hitherto in use have been either rovided with a vsolid or a liquid center. he balls provided with a solid center are open to the objectionthat the material used for.` the: center is weighted, with the result that the'central part of the ball is composed of a substance of greatly reduced resiliency at a place where a highly resilient substance is desired. Those provided with a 'liquid center are also largely open to the same objection, and in addition, the character of the receptacle containing the liquid, or the use of the ball, often causes a distortion of the central portion of the ball, with a result that the center of volume is shifted from the center of gravity, resulting in a couple acting on the ball when in flight, the air resistance acting through the center of volume and the force through the center of gravity, so that the ball will be rotated in Hight and will not liy true, but will duck or drift in its flight. Moreover, the liquidcenter is frequently made of injurious substances, such as acids or the like, which have caused injury to y players or others, when the ball has bursted.

These and other objects of our invention will be better understood from a description of an embodiment of our invention.

`Fgure l is av cross section of a ball showing an embodiment of' our invention;

'Fig 2 is an elevation of the portion of the stratum 6.

Fig. 3 is a view of a section of the center.

Fig. 4: is a section of a portion of a ball showing a second embodiment of our invention.

Referring now to the drawing and to the embodiment shown therein, at 3 is shown the center of the ball, which is made of some light, highly elastic or gelatinous substance, such as ordinary gelatin, or the like. We contemplate the use of. a number of soft solid substances with similar properties and intermediate in character betweenl ordinary l solid substances and liquids. In the particular forms which We have manufactured we have used gelatin, as this performs the functions remarkably well, but we do not wish to be limited to this' particular type of material, except in the claims where 1t 1s specifically mentioned. l

We prefer to mold or otherwise form the center in sections, which when placed together will form the desired shape, which 1s preferably a sphere. In the embodiment shown, we have employed two hemispherical sections or segments. About the center there is formed a stratum 6 of rubber or other suitable material, which weighted, the weight being uniformly distributed about the center. Itis very important that this weight should be uniformly distributed, or substantially uniformly distributed, about the center in order to balance the ball, for otherwise its flight would be irregular and its roll uncertain, especially on the putting reen. By thus distributing they weight, the roll of the ball is increased, it being well known that a ball in which the weight is removed from the center and uniformly` distributed, has a tendency to roll truer and farther than were the weight at the center.

This stratum shown at 6, is formed preferably'by winding about the center rubber tapev or thread, which has been loaded in some way, for example, by impregnating it with some salt of a heavy metal, such as a lead salt. This tape or thread also binds the sections of the center together. If the tape or thread is placed under stress, the center will be slightly compressed, and in tending to expand, forms a very compact and still more highly resilient interior for the ball. On top of the interior, which consists of the center 3 and the stratum 6, there is wound a stratum 7 of ordinary rubber tape or thread under tension, such as is common practice in the manufacture of modern golf balls, thus forming a core. A cover 8 is then placed upon this core preferably in the usual manner.

We do not wish to be limited to any particular dimensions, but we prefer to make the center about seven-sixteenths of an inch in radius, the stratum 6 about two-sixteenths of an inch in thickness, the stratum 7 about four-sixteenths of an inch in thickness and the cover about one-sixteenth of an inch in thickness, though these dimensions may be varied without departing from the spirit of our invention. The ball thus produced is provided with a highly resilient and light center, overcoming the objection to the balls hitherto in use which for the most part, so far as we are aware, have been provided with a center largely deadened where high resiliency is most desired, it being apparent that the ball will be greatly compressed' about the center when struck.

In addition to the advantages we have already named resulting from the distributing of the weight about the center in the manner illustrated and described, the stratum including the weight will not be so much compressed as was the center of the older balls, since the tendency will be to simply` flatten the sphere 6 without compressing the walls 'so much. As will be seen by this device, the most highly resilient part of the ball is placed where it is most needed and the least resilient part of the ball is placed 1gvhare it least will affect the flight of the In the embodiment shown in Fig. 4f the i center is illustrated at 3', portions of the two hemispheres at 4 and 5', the weighting stratum at 6. This stratum is here formed of a thin layer or stratum of weighted material, such as rubber 1l next to the center, then a layer of unweighted material 10, then another layer of weighted material 9. The layers 9 and 11 are preferably each of a single thickness of tape or thread which better enables us to properly distribute the weight than if the thread or tape were wound over and across indiscriminately as is done by the class of labor and machinery employed. The importance, in fact almost necessity, of having the weight properly and evenly distributed will readily be appreciated. f

As we have said, the addition of the weighting material detracts somewhat from the resiliency and other useful properties of the rubber, balata or other substances used. By making the layers or strata 9 and 11 thin and interposing a layer or stratum (here shown at l0) of unweighted and highly resilient material, possessing all the properties of the virgin substance employed, we avoid incorporating in the ball a large contiguous massl of partly deadened Inaterial. Consequently, the ball is more mobile, more lively and better weighted as a result of the use of the improvement of Fig. 4. Weprefer to make'the part 5 aboveseveneighths of an inch in diameter, or thereabout, the part ll about one-sixteenth of an inch thick, the part 10 about three sixty-fourths of an inch thick, the part 9 about five sixtyfourths of an inch thick, and the part 7 about five thirty-seconds of an inch thick, though of course, any suitable dimensions may be employed. lWe find the above dimensions give the best results.

We have illustrated these particular forms and these particular details and have mentioned these particular materials and dimen sions, not that lwe wish to be limited to them, but for the purpose of illustrating and describing our invention. It will be apparent to tho'se skilled in the art that many departures may be made from these forms and details of our invention without departing from the spirit of the invention.

We claim l. In a ,golf ball, the combination of a center part, a winding of weighted rubber of pure rubber thread or tape wound around the first stratum, a third stratum of thinly wound rubber thread or tape about the second stratum, pure rubber wound around the third stratum and a cover around the ball.

v3.' In a golf ball, the combination of a plurality of sections of weighted material between which is interposed pure rubber, and a cover on said ball.

4. In a golf ball, the combination of a plurality of concentric sections of weighting material between which and on each side of which are sections of unweighted material.

5. In a golf ball, the combination of a center of a soft solid substance, a thin winding of weighted rubber tape or thread about said center, a second winding of pure rubber tape or thread about the center and the irst winding, a third winding of weighted rubber tape or thread about the center and the first two windin s, a fourth winding of pure rubber thread a out the center and the first three windings, and a cover on said ball.

6. In a golf ball, the combination of a center made up of complementary sections of a sphere, said sectionsbeing of a soft solid substance, a thin winding of weighted rubber thread or tape about said sections binding them together, a second winding of unweighted rubber about the center and the first winding, a third winding of weighted rubber thread or tape about the center and the first two windings, a third winding of pure rubber about the center and the first three windings and a cover on said ball.

In witness whereof we have affixed our signatures hereunto this Qnd day of March, 1916.

GEORGE C. WORTHINGTON. WILLIS E. REICH-IARD. 

